Winner of surprise giveaway

Hey every one so I've gonne to random.com and chosen the winner for my surprise giveaway and the winner is

Savanna from Sucked Into Books

and I've sent her an email if by Friday she hasn't responded then I will chose some one else. Since there weren't enough people to unlock the second prize I've decided that they (the people who chose to wait for the second prize will have and extra entry into my other giveaway (it hasn't been posted yet but it will be for my Christmas giveaway) it will be international and will go up on November 27th so see you all later love you all and thanks for following

as always ♥, Carol

Review" The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

                                    By: Michelle Hodkin

Synopsis- "Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong."

....
do you hear the crickets?
because that seems to be the only thing I can hear after being shocked speechless. I just finished reading "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer" and I'm still reeling from all the emotions I got while reading it. While there are many things I could say about this book, I have to first applaud Michelle Hodkin for creating such a great debut novel. It had the right amount of intrigue, romance, suspense, nail biting feeling a book should have and inspire. From the very beginning this book captivated me, I loved the fact it started so mysterious, the characters that were ever  changing with out becoming completely different from the original, and of course the romance can't forget the romance.

I'm in ♥ with ♥

I was intrigued by the synopsis of "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer" and so when I had the opportunity to read this book I took it. The whole story is told with flashbacks to an event that sets in motion various important things. Many key components are foretold yet not fully revealed and while usually that drives me insane I actually enjoyed the mystery. After I found out that there will be a sequel I was really excited and my weird feelings concerning the end of the book were laid to rest. Of course I wont tell you the ending but lets just say it definitely made me anxious to read the next book as soon as possible.

Cover Talk! - I love the cover its mysterious just like the book at first look it just seems like a girl in a dress the you notice the fact her face is obscured, there are hands holding her and shes underwater. It's one of those books covers that really fits the book in my opinion. I definitely made me want to read the book that much more. I'm not sure if there are any other book covers (have you seen any other version?) but I wouldn't change it Love it!

My Opinion Ooer! -I feel like this review has to be short because I dont want to inadvertently giveaway some thing and ruin this amazing book for you and also because most of the things I want to talk about are questions or things I want to see if others found, like I said it would ruin the book for you all.  So instead I'll leave you with this quote of a quote I loved "You have to be an artist and a madman, a creature of infinite melancholy, in order to discern, at once, the little deadly demon among the wholesome children"- Vladimir Nabokov quoted by Michelle Hodkin for "The unbecoming of Mara Dyer" I love that it doesn't tell you a secret yet it kind of does. This quote, the way its said not to mention the person who says it, just took my breath away and I can't wait till you get to read it maybe you'll love it as much as I do or maybe you'll come back and tell me what your favorite quote was. I hope every one buys this book, I personally haven't bought it yet but I will and it will be going on my middle book shelf aka my favorite books shelf have a fun weekend every one.

as always ♥, Carol

*  disclaimer pictures not owned by me only used to illustrate some thing on post =D

Extended!

Hey every one I've been MIA again huh? lol well I've been re-reading Christopher Paolini's Inheritance series before the 8th since I get to finally read the last book (I pre ordered XD) but I wanted to first remind you all about my giveaway (the Surprise giveaway with a surprise prize!)  So I've been thinking about it for the past week and I've decided to extend it for another week only because I feel that there could be more entries.  so far it hasn't been the 150 entries needed to open the chance for 2nd prize winners and I really believe it could be possible. So please enter, spread the word and all that good stuff so that I can have a proper 2nd prize winner not just one. So instead of ending November 4th (tomorrow) it will now end on the 11th cant wait to announce the winners  love you all

as always ♥, Carol

Surprise giveaway with a surprise prize!

Hey every one so as the title says I'm having a surprise giveaway with a surprise prize. The reason for the giveaway is mostly because,
1. I love surprises.
2. it's in honor of Halloween 
3.  and of course my birthday was this past Sunday Oct 9.

Since my birthday passed and I wasn't able to have my surprise birthday party (my mom kinda told me about it 2 weeks before XD lol) I was left wanting a surprise and so I decided that if I couldn't have my surprise I would give you, my followers, one.

So heres are the details:

1. One winner only, unless I have more than 150 entries then there will be a a second place winner and if more than 200 entries a third not sure if I'll have more than that.

2. Prize will remain a secret for the most part but of course I'll give out a few hints and here are some:
     a. Fist place winner will get a book from the most popular list in goodreads October releases randombly choosen, even I don't know what the prize will be yet! but here are the 19 choices (19 since I turned 19):
Silence (Hush, Hush, #3) The Son of Neptune (Heroes of Olympus, #2)
Destined (House of Night, #9) The Iron Knight (Iron Fey, #4)
The Death Cure (Maze Runner, #3) Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles, #3)
Half-Blood (Covenant, #1) Eve (Eve, #1) 
Between the Sea and Sky Dearly, Departed 
Deadly Cool  Tris & Izzie
Past Perfect  Amplified 
Frost (Stork, #2) Kiss of Night 
The Fire Wars (Fire Wars, #1)   Girls Don't Fly
Glow
2. In the event of a second place winner that person will win  one of these from the September releases, again randomly choosen book.
Vanish (Firelight, #2)  Lola and the Boy Next Door
Lost in Time (Blue Bloods, #6)  A Beautiful Dark 
The Faerie Ring (The Faerie Ring #1)  Sweet Venom (Medusa Girls #1)
Shut Out  First Kill (The Slayer Chronicles, #1)
3. should a third person win they will get bookmarks and things like that =] sorry but no book unless I decided to add a 4th then maybe but should that happen I'll let you know =] 

ok so rules

1. can only enter once!!! if you enter twice be sure to tell me otherwise you will be disqualified!
2. fill out entry form
3. spread the word: remember the more people who enter the more chance there is of there being more prizes!
4. be a follower =]
5. US only sorry can't do international yet. T_T
so get to it fill out the form  and wait till November 4th (day contest ends.) winner(s) will be announced on the weekend.

last but not least a thanks to all my followers, thanks for putting up with my craziness =]

as always ♥, Carol

Almost time!!!

This will be a short blog post but that's only because I want to sort of prepare you for tomorrow. I'm going to be posting a surprise for every one it's almost here so be on the look out!!! I'm pretty sure you are all going to love it =] can't wait to post it but now I have to go to sleep work tomorrow.

            as always ♥, Carol

The new, old and the in-between

Hi every one!

It's been ages since I last blogged I know I'm so sorry about that. Things got a little too hectic for my taste and I had too take a break. If I remember correctly a couple months ago blogger was experiencing some bugs that were driving me nuts. There was the whole "an error has occurred" message when ever I tried to log in, many times I wasn't even able to log in, and when I was I wouldn't be able to write some thing or read or it would take for ever to even edit a page. Still I tried to continue to blog but my personal life was getting just as messed up.

especially when I'm reading XD

I was working at the factory for 12 hours a day  it was a very exhausting and the pay was all that good but hey it was a job I was happy to do as long as I could pay my bills and help out my family. The bad thing was working those crazy hours left me with no energy to either read or write and my reading suffered badly. The only time I was able to read was at lunch and I wasn't reading more than a book every two weeks, the longest time I've ever taken reading a book. I felt like every thing I was writing was the best I could be doing in and so it also contributed to my break in blogging.

The other thing that happened was college or lack thereof. I'm not sure but I think I mentioned how I had graduated high school last year (class of 2010 yay!) my plan had been to continue with at least community college but things don't tend to go according to plan I've learned. I was unable to continue in the fall so I decided I would take  a year to try and organize my life and so I did always with the hope of picking thing up, I should of known things wouldn't be so easy. I once again tried to enroll in classes but a day before I was to start I was basically denied because of money issues and other things like that.  Lets just say I had a nervous breakdown there was so much strees from myself to do all these things I felt I need to do, work and just family I couldn't take it and had the biggest breakdown I've ever had.

not my pic but awesome books no?

It was the right thing I feel I was able to finally just breathe, to think clearly after it and it just helped me to let go off so many negative feelings. It was during this time that I got some awesome news, I'd gotten the job at another factory. I 'm currently working there I have to say I love it! I'm working 8-hours a day 5 days a week getting payed more than the minimum wage and not stressed at all like I was at the old job. I'm very thankful to my sister who helped me land the job and who has been supporting me with the college thing. So since things have been going so much better I decided I could start bloggin again and I have to say I've been reading some amazing books I hope to review really soon.

Now that every knows the old, the new and the in-between of my lie so far I think getting back to books is a good idea no? also thanks to all who sent me messages wondering where I was. Made me feel like some one cared I wasn't here to at leat help pass 5 minutes of your life lol.

                           as always ♥, Carol

Splash Into Summer Giveaway Winner is...

Hi every one I'm so sorry it took so long to get this post up I couldn't get into my blogger for some weird reason yesterday and I spent most of today checking all the extra entries. I'm really sad to say some people were disqualified and there were also a few double entries. There were still so many entries and after much verification I'm glad to report the lucky winner is Lindsey from United by Books blog-spot (warning if you choose to visit her blog to congratulate her it is more of a mature blog)

anyways I've already sent her the email and I hope to get a response soon if not I will have to pick another winner.  Hope you have a nice day  every one!

                       as always ♥, Carol

Review: What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen

What Happened to Goodbye @ Goodreads

What Happened to Goodbye

By: Sarah Dessen

Published:May 10th, 2011

Publisher: Penguin Young Readers Group

Recieved/Won: Jenny from New Books for New Bloggers

"In the past two years, Mclean Sweet has moved four times. At each stop, she assumes a new persona, but it never quite works. Whether she's an effervescent cheerleader or an intense drama queen, nothing can permanently dispel the turmoil and rage at her mother since her parents' divorce. Sarah Dessen's novel about a teenager and her restaurant manager father captures the vulnerability that young people often experience after the dissolution of their family. A compelling story; strong characterization; and with a touch of romance." Synopsis by Goodreads

Lets Cover Talk!  
As always my curious mind looked for other covers but sadly I only found two. Well it's not really sad just makes our cover talk kind of short, but I'm sure well manage. Now I personally love the cover of the book I received from Jenny from New Books for New Bloggers but I must confess to one thing. Originally when I saw the cover before, on the internet, I believed the girl was at the beach. How I came to this conclusion I'm not entirely sure. The cover for me is like the story, or I guess you could say like Mclean. The only way I can explain this is by saying Mclean isn't what she first appears to be you really have to take a good look at her to even begin to understand her. The book cover was the same for me I didn't really look at it and so I mistook the room for a beach. I think that's life though if you go about at a fast pace some times you miss things that you wouldn't have otherwise some times you really have to stop and as they say "smell the roses".

The other cover is actually very interesting it's the same in the fact that if you just take a quick look at it it looks simple, just a suitcase full of junk, but if you really examine it closely you realize it's much more than that. The things inside are Mclean's baggage literally its all the stuff that has meaning to her. Part of her yet apart at the same time like one person inside of two. I guess the only thing I didn't like so much about the second book cover is the whiteness of it.  It feels unfinished but then again that's kind of like Mclean, she likes to have a blank canvas every time they have to move. Both covers seem connected to the story and I love that. It's not that it takes away from the story if it isn't, but if you get a sense of what the book is about even before you open it up then I think that's amazing.


My Opinion Ooer!

In What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen the story starts with Mclean she has just moved to yet another place with her dad. Like all their other moves Mclean is already starting to plan what she will do, who she will be. The thing is since her parent's nasty divorce she doesn't want to be Mclean the girl whose family is torn apart so she changes herself. The first time she does it she becomes Eliza, cheerleader popular girl, the second time she decides to be more of a drama queen and calls herself Lizbeth  and the last being Beth over achiever. She feels like its a way to not get attached to people after all she knows they could be there for a few weeks to maybe close to a half a year but in the end they always move.  Its what I mean when I said she liked the blank canvas she could make herself over be some one how had a different life who was perfect in her own way but at the end of the day it wasn't her. She feels like it's a way to spare herself pain but in reality the only thing this does is make her forget who Mclean is.

"A hand gripping mine, knowing if I fell, at least I wouldn't do it alone"~page 238

In this new move she decides she will call herself Liz Sweet but things her plans are changed when she meets Dave. Here is where I say the genius Sarah Dessen is by once again creating a character worth loving, imperfect but perfect with his imperfections. Dave boy genius has always walked the straight and narrow path until he realizes he's never once done some thing "normal" teenagers do. So he breaks a rule and gets busted with a beer. When he realizes Mclean is about to get busted herself he helps her and so they meet. It's at this meeting that should have never happened that Mclean becomes the person she was running away from the most, herself. 

The whole book is about looking at the whole picture not just one sector. About family how its not just one place, one set of people but anywhere any time any place. I really loved What Happened to  Goodbye I connected to the story in so many ways,  as well as to many of the characters. The characters are all so different from each other but they mesh so well.I loved Dave (only second to Dexter from This Lullaby another book from Sarah Dessen) Deb was a surprise I loved finding and of course I loved finding the different parts to Mclean I think I connected to her the most. 

I think the ending was perfect I've always loved how Sarah Dessens endings are not complete they leave room for a future because as much as I love a "The End" in life there's no real end there only new beginnings or at least that what I chose to belive lol. If you haven't already done so check out What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen it wont dissapoint.

My overall rating: 5/5 aka a Truly Swoon Worthy book

Truly Swoon Worthy

Have you read What Happened to Goodbye yet? if you have and even if you haven't leave a comment below with your thoughs one it. Hope every one has a fun day.

                         as always ♥, Carol

 Yay! another giveaway a huge thanks to I am A Reader, Not a Writer and Page Turners Blog 

for hosting it. You have over 250 choices of blog to enter! 

I am giving away (to U.S only sorry international readers the next one will be international.)

My fave (so far lol) summer read

Endless Summer Jennifer Echols @Goodreads

It's actually 2 stories in one the first The Boys Next Door the other one being Endless Summer its sequel I think you'll all love it anyways just fill out the form and hop on over to the next blog

as always ♥, Carol

Also as much as I love comments they wont count towards entry sorry =p

This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen Winner!

I think for my first ever giveaway things when pretty well no? lol well I think I could of fixed some things but overall I'm pretty happy. next week the Splash into Summer giveaway will start and I'm not sure yet but there could be a grand prize (book and swag) or there could be two winners well see. So now on to the winner of 

  This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen and the person who won is....

Cyndi M from Dog-Eared & Bookmarked

you have until Friday night to send me your address I've already sent you the email and thanks to every one the participated! happy reading

                          as always ♥, Carol

In My Mailbox # 4

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren inspired by Alea over at  Pop Culture Junkie . For those of you who are not familiar with In My Mailbox, it's a showcase of the books you have received for review, have purchased, or have picked up at the library during the week.

Hey every one welcome to my IMM #4 this week I have a few books but some I've been waiting for eagerly I hope you'll visit the blogs of the people who hosted giveaways since they will most likely have other giveaways who knows you could be the next winner =].

Won:

♥~ Affair With Out End by Candace Camp last of the prize pack thanks Tynga @ Tynga's Reviews 
♥~ Jersey Tomatoes are the Best by Maria Padian thanks  to Liz over @ Cleverly Inked
♥~ Clarity by Kim Harrington thanks to Emily @ Emily's Reading Room
 and of course to the ladies at Book Soulmates for hosting the awesome Monthly  R.A.K event

I can't thank these lovely ladies enough for giving me the chance to read these book! I've finished reading Affair With Out End and Clarity and I've started on Jersey Tomatoes are the Best can't wait to show you all the reviews =]

Bought:

 

♥~ Eona by Alison Goodman because I've been waiting for ever for this one.
♥~ This Lullaby by Sarah Dessen because it's for my Sarah Dessen giveaway
that ends May 16th (yes I extended it one day)
♥~ Mystery book for Splash into Summer Giveaway and swag bag

No Library books this week since I had some from the previous week but next week I'm pretty sure I will have some lol.  So What's in your Mailbox?

              as always ♥, Carol

ps. I'll try to visit all blogs that have visited me and leave a comment today but if I don't get to every one it will have to be until Wednesday since I work mon-tues-wed sorry.